Background: Few studies have examined the gender differences between C-reactive protein (CRP) and muscle strengthening activity (MSA).Methods: The sample (n = 7533) included U.S. adult (≥20 years of age).participants in the 1999–2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Created categories of MSA participation included no MSA (referent group), some MSA (≥1 to 3 to 10 mg/L).Results: Analysis revealed significantly lower odds of having elevated CRP for women reporting some MSA (OR 0.64; 95% CI 0.44–0.93, P = .0191). Significantly lower odds of men having elevated CRP was observed in those reporting MSA volumes meeting the DHHS recommendation (OR 0.72; 95% CI 0.59–0.88, P = .0019). Following adjustment for waist circumference (WC) these odds remained significant in men but not women.Conclusions: These results suggest that WC may mediate the associations between MSA and CRP and this relationship may be stronger in women.

Background: Several studies have revealed inverse associations between physical activity (PA) and C-reactive protein (CRP). However, few studies have examined associations between vigorous intensity PA (VIPA) and CRP using nationally representative samples. Methods: The sample (n = 14,461) included adults (≥20 years of age) who participated in the 1999–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Reported VIPA was categorized into none, insufficient (<500 MET·min·wk ⁻¹ ), and meeting the 2008 Department of Health and Human Services PA recommendation (≥500 MET·min·wk ⁻¹ ). The dependent variable was elevated CRP (3<CRP≤10mg/L). Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate odds and adjust for potential confounding variables. Results: Analysis revealed significantly lower odds of having elevated CRP for those reporting volumes of VIPA meeting the 2008 DHHS PA recommendation (odds ratio 0.75; 95% confidence interval 0.64–0.87, P = 0.0004). Adjustment for several metabolic risk factors minimally affected the observed associations. Conclusions: In a representative sample of U.S. adults, volumes of VIPA meeting current recommendations was associated with significantly lower odds of having an elevated CRP level when compared to those reporting no VIPA. These results suggest an inverse relationship may exist between VIPA and elevated CRP levels. Future studies should examine the associations among objectively measured VIPA, CRP, and other markers of metabolic health.

Background: Prescription medication usage has been used as a predictor of disease prevalence and overall health status. Evidence suggests an inverse relationship exists between polypharmacy, which is the use of 5 or more medications, and physical activity participation. However, there is limited evidence examining the relationship between sedentary time and polypharmacy in adults. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between sedentary time and polypharmacy in a large nationally representative sample of US adults. Methods: Study sample (N = 2879) included nonpregnant adult (≥20 y old) participants from the 2017–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Self-reported minutes per day of sedentary time were converted to hours per day. The dependent variable was polypharmacy (≥5 medications). Results: Analysis revealed that for every hour of sedentary time, there was 4% greater odds of polypharmacy (odds ratio, 1.04; 95% confidence interval, 1.00–1.07, P = .04) after adjusting for age, race/ethnicity, education, waist circumference, and the interaction term between race/ethnicity and education. Conclusion: Our findings suggest increased sedentary time is associated with an increased risk of polypharmacy among a large nationally representative sample of US adults.

Endothelial dysfunction may be a phenotypic expression of heart failure (HF). Total brachial artery reactivity (TBAR) is a non-invasive measurement of endothelial function that has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular outcomes. Limited information is currently available on the impact of TBAR on incident HF and its subtypes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether TBAR is associated with overall incident HF, and the two HF subtypes, HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) in a community-based study. The sample included 5499 participants (45–84 years of age) from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis who were free of cardiovascular disease at baseline. Brachial artery was imaged via ultrasound after five minutes of cuff occlusion at the right forearm. TBAR was calculated as the difference between maximum and minimum brachial artery diameters following cuff release, divided by the minimum diameter multiplied by 100%. A dichotomous TBAR variable was created based on the median value (below or above 7.9%). Participants with EF ≤ 40% were considered HFrEF and those with EF ≥ 50% were considered HFpEF. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Over a mean follow-up period of 12.5 years, incident HF was diagnosed in 250 participants: 98 classified as HFrEF, 106 as HFpEF, and 46 with unknown or borderline EF (41–49%). Crude analysis revealed that those with TBAR below the median had a significantly greater risk of HF (HR 1.46; 95% CI 1.13–1.88, p < 0.01) and HFrEF (HR 1.61; 95% CI 1.07–2.43, p < 0.05). Following adjustment for known HF risk factors (e.g., age, sex, race, blood pressure), the strength of these relationships was attenuated. Borderline significant results were revealed in those with HFpEF (HR 1.43; 95% CI 0.97–2.12, p = 0.06). Kaplan–Meier curves suggest significantly lower risks of developing HF and HFrEF in those with TBAR above the median (log-rank p ≤ 0.05 for both). When examined as a continuous variable, with a cut point of 50% for EF, every 1-standard deviation (9.7%) increase in TBAR resulted in a 19 and 29% decrease in risk of HF (p < 0.05) and HFrEF (p = 0.05), respectively. Lower TBAR values were associated with higher rates of incident HF and HFrEF, suggesting a possible role of endothelial dysfunction in HF pathogenesis. The impact of other known HF risk factors may mediate this relationship, thus further research is warranted.

Purpose: Evidence suggests that sedentary behavior is increased among those with mobility impairment, but the evidence examining the impact of social support networks (SSN) on this relationship remains limited. This study examines the relationship between SSN and sedentary behavior among adults with and without mobility impairment. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2008. Subjects: U.S. adults (≥40 years of age) with (n = 962) and without (n = 1393) mobility impairment. Measures: The Social Support Network (SSN) score was created using self-reported emotional, financial, church, friends, and marital support/status. The dependent variable in this study was the upper quartile of sedentary time in minutes. Results: Both higher SSN score (AOR .43; 95% CI 0.25-.76, P = .045) and poverty to income ratio (PIR) (AOR 2.60; 95% CI 1.40-4.82, P = .01) were significant predictors of increased sedentary time among adults with mobility impairment. Among adults without mobility impairment, higher PIR was the only significant predictor of increased sedentary time (OR 3.59; 95% Cl 1.80-7.15, P < .0001). Conclusion: Higher SSN score was associated with significantly lower odds of increased sedentary time among adults with mobility impairment. A similar relationship was not revealed among adults without mobility impairment. Higher PIR was associated with significantly higher odds of increased sedentary time among adults with and without mobility impairment.